


What Happens in London

by viennasunrise (kteaanne)



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-29
Updated: 2016-05-29
Packaged: 2018-07-11 00:52:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7017607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kteaanne/pseuds/viennasunrise
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Happy birthday, Tony. <3</p>
            </blockquote>





	What Happens in London

“No comment,” he sighed, pinching his nose in frustration. What was it with reporters?

_“So should I put down ‘The Avengers declined to comment’ then? Or would you rather I report that Tony Stark, the supposed press liaison for the initiative, doesn’t know what the hell he’s talking about?”_

“You print that and I’ll sue you for libel and you know it, Don. What happened in London isn’t what you or any of the rest of the press keep making it into. But I’ll give you a quote if you _really_ think that’s what you want.”

_“I’m all ears, Mr. Stark.”_

“London was a team outing, call it a team building exercise if you really want. We weren’t asked to come by any head of state that I’m aware of, we weren’t sent there on General Fury’s orders. I wanted to visit the Tate and I dragged everyone else with me. We had no previous knowledge of any kind of imminent attack on Westminster or Downing Street and I’d really appreciate it if, for old times sake, you’d take Captain Rogers off your website's frontpage.”

_“You’re seriously asking me to believe the seven of you flew thousands of miles just because you wanted to look at some modern art? You live in New York for godsake!”_

“I’m not asking you to believe anything, Don,” he said, “ You wanted a quote and I gave you one. Take it or leave it. But if I wake up in the morning and see that you’ve posted any of this out of context or that you’ve made the accusation that I don’t know what the hell I’m talking about—”

_“I know, Tony, don’t worry about it.”_

“And the picture of Steve?”

Don huffed on the other end of the line, _“I’ll see what I can do.”_

“That’s all I can ask,” he said before cutting off the connection. He tossed the phone onto his nightstand and dropped his head into his hands.

“Tony?” Steve asked from beside him, clearly not as asleep as he’d assumed.

Tony grumbled in response.

He felt a warm hand on his shoulder, pulling him down until he was tucked up tightly against Steve.

“What are you doing on the phone in the middle of the night?”

“It was a reporter from ACN. He wanted a quote about what happened and I didn’t want him jumping to conclusions and end up on the phone with Clint. The last thing we need is for the rest of the world to know what really happened.”

Steve laughed gently. “Tony, I don’t care if they know.”

“I know! I just don’t want to deal with all of it yet. Do you remember how nuts they all went when you came out on national television? Or how they all jumped to conclusions that you were dating Clint, or Bruce, or for some ungodly reason Fury? Or how we couldn’t walk out the front doors of the tower for over a month when they found out you were really dating me? I don’t want to do that again.”

Steve started to rub circles over his shoulders, something he did quite a lot when he thought Tony was about to vibrate out of his skin in some kind of anxious fit. “We’re going to have to tell them all eventually. Why not get it over and done with while we’re still out of the country?”

“So you want to tell the whole world how, in the middle of trying to ask you to marry me, Hydra decided it was time to blow up the British government and I never even got the words out? You really wanted me to tell a reporter that I flew you and I out to London without telling anyone so I could spring a proposal on you away from the team but it didn’t matter because SHIELD had intel they didn’t bother to share with us and the rest of the team was here anyway and basically barged in the second I dropped to my knee? You really want that story leaked to the press? While we’re at it why don’t we reenact the moment and sell the pictures!? God knows we’ll probably never see that look on Natasha’s face again.”

“Tony,” Steve chided, “we’re fine. No one died, the Strike Team is in custody, and the team went back to New York. You and I are staying here until you feel like you want to go back and when we do one, or both of us, will be wearing rings and it’ll be fine. Stop worrying about everything so much.”

Tony felt himself relax a quarter of an inch. “I know. I was just kind of hoping we’d be engaged before we have to go to that stupid birthday dinner Pepper planned for tonight. How the hell did that woman even figure out we’d be in London this week? We only planned this trip two days ago.”

He felt Steve tense up next to him. “That would be my fault.”

Tony pushed himself up to loom over Steve, “What do you mean ‘that would be my fault’? What did you do, Rogers?”

Steve smiled and rolled off the bed, landing with a soft thunk when he hit the floor.

“Did you seriously just fall off the bed, old man?”

Steve’s laugh rang out from under the bed, “No, and I’m not old. Physically I’m 15 years your junior so stuff it.” His head popped up from the side of the bed, his blond hair sticking up in ways that made Tony’s heart sing. “What time is it, Tony?”

“According to my phone it’s 1:30 in the morning. What that hell does that matter?”

“And if it’s 1:30 in the morning, what does that make today?”

“May 29th. And?”

Steve held out his hand, “And come here.”

Tony took it and Steve pulled him over to the other side of the bed, before wrapping his arms around Tony and smiling like the sun.

“Did you hit your head, Rogers? Do I need to call 9-9-9 and get you an ambulance because—”

Steve laughed, “No, Tony. I’m fine. I do have a question for you though.”

“Lay it on me, crazy.”

Steve took one of Tony’s hands in his and pressed something cool into his palm.

“Bruce helped me figure out a way to shave off a little bit from the edge of the shield and not mess the balance up.”

“What are you doing?”

“I’m asking you to marry me. Now shut up.”

“Wait a—”

“Nope. You tried yesterday. It’s my turn now,” Steve scowled jokingly up at him so Tony whacked him playfully on the shoulder.

“Alright, ask me your question.”

Steve cleared his throat, suddenly looking very serious, “You were my first friend in this century, Tony. Well, you were my first two friends in this century but it wasn’t like I knew that at the time,” Steve smiled at the memory, “You gave me a home and showed me I belong here. You showed me I didn’t lose out on love just because I fell asleep for so damn long. You make me angrier than anyone else in the history of the world; you challenge me on almost everything I say, including me trying to propose. Sometimes I think you’re purposefully trying to drive me insane. And I love you for all of that. I’m not half the man I want to be without you; and at the risk of sounding like a terrible chick flick I’m going to say that I think we compliment each other in ways we can’t quantify and I’m grateful for that everyday. So, if you’re willing, I’d really like to spend the rest of our lives loving each other in ways no one else can understand. So, Anthony Edward Stark, I’m down on both of my knees at almost two in the morning asking if you’ll marry me because by some stroke of luck Hydra ruined your plan and not mine.”

Tony looked down at him, this wonderful human being he wasn’t sure he deserved but damn well wasn’t going to give up, and smiled. “I hate you so much right now.”

“Pretty sure you don’t. Can you just say yes now so we can go back to sleep?”

Tony laughed, completely caught off guard by Steve’s absolute confidence in the situation. “Yeah, sure. Let’s go back to bed.”

“That’s not an answer.”

Tony took Steve’s face in both his hands and locked eyes with him, “I love you, Steven Grant Rogers, and I will absolutely marry you any day, anywhere, under any circumstance.”

“Good,” Steve said, his voice sounding a bit unsteady, “I’m glad.”

Tony leaned down and kissed him gently, “Me too.”


End file.
